Method for rejuvenating golf balls



Aug. 3, 196$ s. GLASER METHOD FOR REJUVENATING GOLF BALLS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed June 15, 1961 INVENTOR. SIMON GLASER ATTORNEYS S. GLASER METHOD FOR REJUVENATING GOLF BALLS Aug. 23 fi96 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed June 13, 1961 INVENTOR.

SIMON GLASER ATTORNEYS- United States Patent Office na 3,268,634 METHOD FOR REJUVENATING GOLF BALLS Simon Glaser, 434 Weliesley Road, Philadelphia, Pa. 19119 Original application June 13, 1961, Ser. No. 116,820, now Patent No. 3,216,053, dated Nov. 9, 1965. Divided and this application Feb. 17, 1965, Ser. No. 433,381 Claims. (Cl. 26436) This application is a division of application Serial No. 116,820, filed June 13, 1961, now Patent No. 3,216,058.

This invention relates to a method for rejuvenating used and aged golf balls.

A golf ball basically comprises an inner core of metal or liquid, an outer core of rubber strands wound in a spherical shape, and a plastic covering over the rubber strands. If the golf ball remains unused, the rubber immediately underneath the plastic surface begins to dry rot. The ball loses much of its resilience, and consequently loses flight distance. This same phenomenon of dry rot can be seen in old automobile tires.

In most cases the dry rot is uneven, which causes the ball to lose balance, and the direction of the ball in flight becomes unpredictable. This uneven decay is more prevalent when the surface of the ball is cut during use, leaving a portion of the core exposed to the air.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a method for rejuvenating golf balls.

It is another object of this invention to provide a method for restoring the resilience to used and aged golf balls.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a method for restoring the balance of an old golf ball.

These and other objects of this invention are accomplished by providing a method of rejuvenating an old golf ball comprising rotating the ball, while under pressure, against a roughened surface.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the apparatus of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of one of the rollers of this invention; and

FIG. 5 shows a modification of the latch means for closing the device.

Referring now in greater detail to the various figures of the drawings wherein similar reference characters refer to similar parts, a device for rejuvenating golf balls em- 'bodying the present invention is generally shown at 16 in FIG. 1. Device 16 basically comprises a casing 12 having a lid 14 which is hinged at 16 to casing 12. Both casing 12 and lid 14 are generally of a parallelepiped shape, with each having an open face. The open faces of the casing and lid meet along a common plane 18.

Rotatively secured in lateral walls 20 of casing 12 is shaft 22. As seen in FIG. 2, this shaft supports roller 24 in casing 12. Shaft 22 is secured in place by rings 25 on the shaft. These rings have bearing faces adjacent casing 12.

Welded to the exterior of casing 12, at the rear thereof, are a pair of housings 26. These housings are of a generally parallelepiped shape. The faces of housings 26 adjacent casing 12 are open and cover vertical slots 28 in the casing (FIG. 3). Slidably and rotatably mounted in the two slots 28 is shaft 30. Shaft 30 supports a second roller 32 in casing 12.

As seen in FIG. 3, shaft 31 has end portions 34 of reduced diameter. These end portions are rotatively mounted in bearing blocks 36, which are slidably mounted in housings 26. The lower surface of each housing 26 is provided with an internally threaded cylindrical member 38. Threaded in said cylindrical member 38 is a screw 40 having a slotted face 42. The slot can be reached by a screw driver passing through hole 44 in housing 26. Welded to screw 40 is a fiat plate 46. A compression spring 48 is positioned between bearing block 36 and plate 46.

Rotatively mounted in lid 14 is a shaft 50.. This shaft is secured in place by bearing rings 52 (FIG. 3), which are fixed to the shaft. A roller 54 is secured to shaft 50. One outer end of shaft 51), which is wholly outside of lid 14, is of square cross section, as at 56. The purpose of the squared end is to permit the shaft to be secured for rotation in crank 60. Crank basically comprises a shank portion 62, having square hole 64 at one end thereof. Shank portion 62 is bent outwardly at 66 to form arm 67, so that it will clear housing 26 when being turned. A handle 68 is rotatively mounted on pin 71 which is secured to the arm 67.

FIG. 4 shows a cross section of roller 32. It should be noted that rollers 24 and 54 have the same cross section. Each roller has a concave surface 69, extending over the full width of the roller. The center part of each roller surface has two groups of intersecting parallel grooves cut therein, which results in the cross-hatch design 70. This grooving results in the formation of a plurality of raised, rounded portions 72 between the grooves, as shown in FIG. 4. The rollers are preferably made of steel, but other known materials can be used.

Referring again to FIG. 1, it is seen that casing 12 has a plurality of tabs 76 with holes therein secured to the bottom perimeter thereof. Bolts can be passed through the holes of tabs 76 when mounting the device on a table or workbench. A handle 78 is secured to the top of lid 14 for raising and lowering the lid. A clamp 80 is pivotally secured to the lid 14 by pin 82. The lower portion of clamp 80 has a hook portion 84 cut out therefrom, which hook portion engages pin 86 to hold the lid on the casing during use.

In use, the clamp 81) is released by pivoting it in the direction of arrow 90. Lid 14 is then pivoted in the direction of arrow 92 to open it. A golf ball, shown in phantom at in FIG. 2, is then inserted to rest between rollers 24 and 32. Lid 14 is closed and clamp 80 is hooked on pin 86. This brings rollers 24, 32 and 54 into pressure contact with the golf ball. The amount of pressure can be regulated by adjusting screws 40 which support springs 48. The ball is situated in approximately the centers of the concave-faced rollers.

The rejuvenation is carried out by turning crank 60 in a clockwise direction. This rotates roller 54, which in turn rotates golf ball 160. The rotating golf ball will in turn cause rollers 24 and 32 to rotate due to the com bined effect of the pressure supplied by resiliently mounted roller 32 and the grooved surfaces of the rollers. In place of crank 60, roller 54 could be turned by an electric motor (not shown). It should also be noted that roller 24 is at a slightly higher elevation than roller 32. The purpose of this is to keep the golf ball from being propelled out of place by the rotation of the rollers.

Obviously, the rolls can be turned in the opposite directions by suitably changing their positions. Also, crank 60 can be arranged to positively rotate all three rollers by a suitable gearing mechanism.

The combined effect of the rotating rollers and the pressure applied performs a kneading action on the golf ball. It is this kneading action that alleviates any dry rot in the rubber of ball thereby restoring the balance and resiliency to the ball. The amount of pressure applied to the ball can be as low as 5 pounds per square inch, but is preferably around 25 pounds per square inch. In one embodiment of the invention, the ball can be placed in device under a pressure of pounds per square inch, at a roller speed of 220 r.p.m. for one minute. However, these conditions are not to be taken as limiting, since each of the conditions can be varied, so long as the desired kneading action is carried out.

The sizes of golf balls vary from country to country. The device of this invention can be readily adapted to different size golf balls by using clamp of FIG. 5 in place of clamp 80. Clamp 110 basically comprises an upper male portion 112 and a lower female portion 114.

Male portion 112 comprises a flat bar 116 which is pivoted to lid 14 by hinge 118. Wrapped around hinge 118 is a wire compression spring having dependent fingers 120 which engage the bar 116 and the lid 14. Secured to the front face of bar 112 is handle 122. Extending from the front face of bar 116, and integral therewith, are equally vertically spaced triangular projections 124. These projections have horizontal tops with inwardly inclined front faces.

Female portion 114 comprises a bar which has a flange 132 extending inwardly at right angles thereto. Extending downwardly, and at right angles to flange 132 is a second flange 134, which is Welded to the face of casing 12. The inner face of rod 130 contains equally vertically spaced cut-out portions 136. These portions conform in size, shape and spacing to triangular projections 124.

In use, the lid 14 is held in place by engaging projections 124 in holes 136. Due to the shape of the holes, the lid is held securely in place. Different size golf balls can be used by regulating the number of projections engaged in the holes. Also, clamp 110 allows the varying of the pressure on golf balls of the same size. Clamp 110 is released by pushing handle 122 inwardly, which causes projections 124 to move in the direction of arrow and out of holes 136. The lid is then raised in the direction of arrow 142.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed as the invention is:

1. A method of rejuvenating an old golf ball comprising kneading the ball by rotating it under pressure against a roughened surface.

2. A method of rejuvenating a golf ball comprising kneading the ball by rotating it under pressure between a plurality of concave-surfaced rollers.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the surfaces of the rollers contain a plurality of grooves.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein one of the rollers is spring mounted to supply the necessary pressure against the ball.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein one of the rollers is spring mounted to supply the necessary pressure against the ball.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 697,262 4/ 1902 Marcy 26436 1,533,563 4/1925 Maggi 26436 FOREIGN PATENTS 416,643 9/1934 Great Britain.

ROBERT F. WHITE, Primary Examiner.

S. A. HELLER, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A METHOD OF REJUVENTING AN OLD GOLF BALL COMPRISING KEADING THE BALL BY ROTATING IT UNDER PRESSURE AGAINST A ROUGHENED SURFACE. 